Improvement in double cannon for chain-shot



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE WM. M. JEFFERS, OF ELMIRA, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO' HIMSELF AND r WM. L. GIBSON, OF SAME PLAGE.

IMPROVEMENT IN DOUBLE CANNON FOR CHAlN- SHOT( Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 24,518. dated June 21, 1 859.

To ai& whom, 't may concern:

Be it known that I,.WILLI AM M. J EFFERs, of Elmira, in the county of Chemung and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Cannon for Firing Chain-Shot; and I do hereby declare that the' following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, 'making part of this specification, and to the letters of reference marked thereon.

Figure l is a horizontal section through the center of my improved cannon. g vertical section on the line xxof Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an elevation of the muzzle. Fig. 4 is a View of the chain-shot.

Similar letters refer to lik e parts inall the figures.

My improvement relates to cannons having double barrels.

A A, Fig. 1, are the barrels, which are diverging in order to straighten the connectingchain between the balls. These barrels may diverge at a greater or less angle, in proportion to the distance the piece is designed to Carry or the length of the chain connection. They are bored so as to unite at the breechthat is, so that the metal dividing them may be re moved from a small portion where the charge of powder lies, as seen ata Figs. l and 2. This allows the powder of both cartridges to mingle, and a single fuse (indicated at b) ignites both, so as to insure a simultaneous dscharge. The force of the powder as exerted upon both balls is equalized by this arrangement, so as to act as a single charge only, and thus prevent one ball being thrown in advance of the other, as would result from separate charges if the amount of powder was not precisely the same, or if one charge was ignited sooner than the other. A slot, c, is formed between the two barrels extending from the muzzle to near the breech. This slot is sufficiently large to admit the long central link of the chain d, Fig. 4, which slides down in loading to the position shown in Fig. 1. After the powder and wad, the balls are placed one in each barrel,

and driven down by the ramrod,-when the loose chain is gathered together, and the link d, being placed in the slot and driven down, forces the chain in advance of it in a wad upon Fig. 2 is a;

the ball. In firing, the balls'carrythe wad of chain and the link before them, the link keeping in advance of the mass of chain; therefore its egress from the gun is free, and it does not wedge or impede the balls more than from its weight. In this method of loading and discharging, the chain is thrown with the balls in a gathered mass until unfolded by their' di- Vergence, and it does not hang down'to drag or lower the balls by its weight.

A wad may be used upon the chain, ifthought advisable, to keep it gathered together, oi to prevent it from jarring out when the gun is drawn with its load in.

The slot may be formed in casting, or by drilling, or sawing, as may be found most con- Venient.

The partition serves to prevent the force of the powder being wasted or lost as would be the case were a continuous slot used, by

'its escaping between the balls, it being impossible to so load such a gun as to insure the expending of the entire force on the balls. The partition makes the charge act on each 'ball as through an independent barrel at the' moment' of starting.

I am aware that cannon have been constructed having two diverging barrels, butunited -by a slot through their entire length.

i and this I do not claim, as the results obtained thereby differessentially from those'of my arrangement as regards employing the force ot' the powder effectively, and the strength and security of the piece; but

I claim- The use of a partition intermediate between the breech and muzzle of the piece, in combiration with the slot c, so arranged that .the charge of the barrel sshall mingle at the fuse, so that immediately on the ignition thereof the expansive force shall be wh'olly expended in projecting the two balls, and not weakened v by a continuous connection between the barrels, substantially as and for the purpose shown and described.

WM. M. JEFFERS. witnesses:

J. FRASER, W. L. GIBsON. 

